It’s been no secret that host Jeff Probst has wanted CBS to air a celebrity edition of Survivor. And while it’s still a dream of his, he may be one step close to making it a reality now that a high-profile sitcom star has expressed serious interest in taking part.
Plus, Howie Mandel is confirming his return to America’s Got Talent. Dylan McDermott, Skylar Samuels and KaDee Strickland have all been cast in network pilots. And Ryan Seacrest is producing a new reality series about ballroom dancing.
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Last fall, Survivor cast Lisa Whelchel from The Facts of Life as their very first celebrity contestant. She won over viewers and became the fan favorite. But instead of just one star, imagine if the entire cast was made up of celebrities. Would it be anything like I’m A Celebrity … Get Me Out of Here! No matter, Jeff Probst, whose talk show was just cancelled, is continuing to push CBS to make it happen.
Probst told People, “Mark Burnett and I really want to do a celebrity version. We were just talking about this at a Grammy party last week.” And guess what? He already has one star lined up to compete. “Neil Patrick Harris was there, and he told me flat out he wants to play. I challenged him and said, ‘Do you really want to do it, or is this just a fun fantasy that will never happen?’ He said, ‘I want to do it.'”
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He continued by saying, “So, on the heels of NPH having the guts to say, ‘I’m in’ – I’m putting out the challenge! If you are a celebrity and truly believe you could hack it, it’s time to put up.” Survivor is a grueling game to play, but the celebrities wouldn’t have to be away for 39 days. “It would be a shortened shoot — maybe 10 days or so — so you can still get back to do your movies and TV shows, and you won’t lose so much weight that your agents will panic. But rest assured it will still kick your ass. It we can get a truly great cast together, I think CBS would go for it.”
I assume the contestants would compete for money for their charities, as other shows like The Celebrity Apprentice do. And it would probably air for a few weeks or so during the summer.
Are there any celebrities in mind you’d love to see compete on Survivor?
Survivor: Caramoan — Fans vs. Favorites airs Wednesdays at 8pm on CBS.
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(Image courtesy of CBS)
Staff Writer, BuddyTV
Jeff Dodge, a graduate of Western Washington University, has been a TV news editor for many years and has had the chance to interview multiple reality show stars, including Randy Jackson, Nick Cannon, Heidi Klum, Mel B and John Cena.
